Fifth Annual Conference of the European SPES Forum entitled « Respect and Economic Democracy » was hosted by the University of Catania in April 17-18, 2009 in Catania, Italy. The conference has the purpose to explore a common sense of respect, which can improve the dialogue between people and to act as a guarantor of an ethically balanced resources allocation. At the same time, the conference directs the attention of academics and practitioners to the gap between stakeholders and individuals and the lack or inefficiency of democratic mechanism in business governance.

The authors of this book feel that the time for reinventing business has come; and this implies thinking differently, jumping across the comfortable barriers of management sub-disciplines, seeking the intersections between areas that usually do not communicate. The ongoing evolution of international events seems to confirm this feeling.

The European SPES Forum continues its mission to bring informed debate on issues related to spirituality and society in this seventh cahier with a focus on the nature of wisdom and its practice by leaders. Eight authors bring a breadth of style and thinking to the way in which leaders lead and how wisdom (connected to spirituality) can result in a more integrated and peaceful practice of leadership. We are treated to both narrative, reflective and academic perspectives on Leading with Wisdom and the authors find wisdom to be closely connected to virtue, character, integrity, morality, spirituality, meaning and the knowledge of how to live well.

Respect and Economic Democracy is based on the hypothesis that democracy will become a growing ingredient of good business and leadership. Many contributions of this sixth European SPES Cahier disclosing new practices of democratic entrepreneurship confirm this hypothesis. The authors assume that economic democracy implies a commitment rooted in respect.